This invention relates to ice scrapers. More particularly, this invention relates to ice scrapers including a body and a handle sleeve, wherein the handle sleeve can be mounted in either of two orientations, but is locked in position once mounted.
Ice scrapers for removing ice and snow from automobile windshields are well known. Generally, the functional portion of an ice scraper is an edge designed for scraping against the windshield to dislodge ice or snow. The remainder of the ice scraper bears the edge and provides a handhold for a user to scrape the working edge against the windshield surface. The working edge is generally made of plastic.
While the working edge must be substantially straight to contact the glass surface, the shape of the remainder of the ice scraper is determined by the need for the user to be able to hold the ice scraper in a comfortable and useful position, and by aesthetic considerations. Because the working edge is generally a plastic, the ice scraper as a whole can be molded from plastic in almost any shape.
One popular shape for an ice scraper is substantially triangular. The body of the ice scraper is relatively wide at the working edge to remove as much ice or snow as possible in a single stroke, but tapers substantially to a point remote from the working edge to form a comfortable handhold that provides good leverage for the user. The ice scraper may be substantially planar, or may curve in a plane perpendicular to the line defined by the working edge.
Such ice scrapers can be molded as a single piece of plastic. More commonly however, the working edge is made from a hard material such as polystyrene or a methacrylate plastic. Such ice scrapers are frequently covered by a sleeve of a preferably resilient material that is more comfortable to hold. The sleeve may be provided with surface treatment on one or both sides to further enhance the user's grip. For example, grooves or a roughened surface may be provided.
Ice scrapers are frequently given away as promotional items by businesses. The businesses may want to imprint the ice scraper with advertising material as part of such a promotion. Imprinting preferably would be done where there is no surface treatment. Different businesses may want different-sized imprints. At the same time, different surface treatments may provide different-sized areas for imprinting. For example, it may be best for the user's grip to provide one surface that has a surface treatment and one that does not; in such a case a larger imprint could be provided on the untreated surface.
It is desirable from a promotional point of view to have the imprint on the upper surface of the ice scraper. Thus, depending on whether the advertiser wants a large or a small imprint, a supplier of blank ice scrapers for imprinting might want to be able to provide the ice scraper with the surface treatment on either the top or the bottom. If the sleeve is fastened to the body, the manufacturer would have to stock two different types of ice scrapers, even though the same sleeve could be mounted in either orientation. However, if the sleeve is not fastened to the body, it could separate from the body during use.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide an ice scraper in which the sleeve could be mounted on the body and locked once mounted, but in which the orientation of the sleeve is not predetermined so that it can be mounted in one of two orientations and not be locked in place until mounted.